The invention relates to a water purifier for treating water.
Water must be effectively treated before it can be used in confined volumes such as swimming pools, hot tubs and spas, which are highly susceptible to rapid microorganism growth and can become health hazards if not properly and regularly treated.
Perhaps the most common method of treating water to kill microorganisms is to add chlorine. Chlorine is readily available and can be added directly to the water in tablet, liquid, or powder form. Because chlorine is added manually, treatment schedules can be irregular. Even with regular treatment schedules, high initial concentrations of chlorine are required to effectively ensure a minimum level of chlorine between treatments. However, high usage levels of chlorine can create objectionable odor and can cause skin and eye irritations.
In recent years, alternative water treatment methods have been developed that employ flow-through water purifiers that kill microorganisms in the water flowing through the purifiers. Examples of this type of water purifier are described in the applicant's prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,247 and pending U.S. Ser. No. 08/439,214, which are incorporated herein by reference. These systems have advantageously employed flow-through canisters containing compatible water purification materials to effectively kill most types of microorganisms common to swimming pools, hot tubs, and spas. However, certain water purification materials are incompatible when placed in contact with each other. Incompatible water purification materials include silver-containing materials and oxidizing materials.
Suitable oxidizing materials include halogens, such as chlorine or bromine, or peroxides such as potassium peroxymonosulfate. Suitable silver-containing materials are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,352,369 and in U.S. Ser. No. 08/628,405, entitled "Self-Regulating Water Purification Composition" and filed Apr. 5, 1996, which are incorporated herein by reference. Examples of these purification materials include silver metal on a support. The support can be a ceramic and can include an inorganic oxide, e.g., an aluminum oxide. The silver can be chemically deposited on the ceramic support or dispersed as a powder, shavings, or turnings with the ceramic support. The purification material can include a second metal, preferably zinc, copper, aluminum, iron, or manganese, most preferably, zinc.